"Papa. Let me see it; it must be something pretty.
"His father took it, and showed me a daub of notes, mostly written over blots that had been wiped out. (N.B.—Little Wolfgang in his ignorance had dipped his pen every time to the bottom of the inkstand, and so made a blot each time he put it on the paper; this he wiped out with his flat hand, and went on writing.) We laughed at first over this apparent nonsense; but the papa then began to notice the principal thing, the composition. He remained motionless for a long while, looking at the page; at last two tears—tears of admiration and joy—fell from his eyes. 'Look, Herr Schachtner,' said he, 'how correctly and regularly it is all arranged, only it cannot be used because it is so extraordinarily difficult that nobody can play it.' Little Wolfgang broke in: 'That is why it is a concerto; it must be practised till one gets it right. Look, this is how it must go!' He played it, but could only just make enough out of it to show us what he meant.'
* * * * *
"Soon after they returned from Vienna, and Wolfgang brought with him a little fiddle that had been presented to him. The late Herr Wentzl, an excellent violinist, who also did a little in composition, brought six trios with him which he had written during your father's absence, and asked his opinion on them. We played the trios, your father taking the bass part on the viola, Wentzl the first violin, and I was to play the second. Wolfgang begged that he might play the second, but his father refused the foolish request, as he had not had the slightest instruction on the violin, and the father thought he was not in the least able to do it. Wolfgang said: 'To play a second violin one need not have learned!' When his father insisted on his going away and not disturbing us any further, he began to cry bitterly, and rushed out of the room with his fiddle. I begged them to let him play with me. At last papa said: 'Well, play with Herr Schachtner; but so quietly that nobody hears you, else you must go.' So Wolfgang played with me. I soon noticed with astonishment that I was quite superfluous. I quietly put down my violin and looked at your father, down whose cheeks tears of admiration and happiness were rolling, and so we played all six trios. When we had finished Wolfgang grew so bold with our applause that he declared he could play the first violin part too. We tried it for a joke, and nearly died of laughing when he played this part also, though with quite incorrect and irregular fingering, yet so that he never stuck fast."
In January, 1762, Leopold Mozart took his children to Munich, where they played before the Elector. Their visit lasted three weeks, and was so successful that in September of the same year they started for Vienna. They travelled leisurely, staying five days at Passau at the request of the Bishop, and giving a concert at Linz under the patronage of the Governor-General of the Province, Count Schlick. The astonishment and delight at the performances of the two children were unbounded. On arriving at Vienna, they received a command to visit the Emperor at Schönbrunn. Both he and the Empress were good musicians, and many incidents are related by Mozart's biographers showing not only the interest taken in the youthful prodigy, but also the tests of ability to which the Emperor submitted him. It was, of course, only natural that the example set by royalty should be followed by members of the Court, and the Mozarts were invited by all the nobility of Vienna. Their visit must have been a source of considerable profit, as many valuable presents were made them. Their success was interrupted for a time, from Wolfgang being attacked by scarlet fever; happily, the attack was not very severe, though sufficient to confine him to the house for a month. The family returned to Salzburg early in January, 1763.
Encouraged by the success of his first venture, Leopold Mozart resolved on a much longer tour, and on June 9, 1763, he, with his wife and the two children, left home for Paris. At Wasserburg their carriage broke down, and a day's delay was caused while it was being repaired. Leopold Mozart writes to his friend Hagenauer:
"The latest thing is that, to amuse ourselves, we went to the organ, and I explained the pedals to Wolferl, whereupon he at once, stante pede, began to try them. Pushing back the stool and standing, he preluded, stepping about on the pedals just as if he had practised for many months. All were amazed; it is a new gift of God, which many only attain after much trouble."
After passing through Munich, Augsburg, Mainz, Frankfort, Cologne, and Brussels, giving many concerts by the way, they reached Paris on November 18, where they were the guests of the Bavarian Ambassador, Count von Eyck, whose wife was the daughter of an official at Salzburg. By means of introductions which he had brought with him, Leopold Mozart soon obtained permission for his children to play at Court, where the King's daughters showed themselves extremely friendly to them. The father in one of his letters tells how they went on New Year's Day to the supper-room of the royal family, and how Wolfgang stood near the Queen, who fed him with sweetmeats and talked to him in German, interpreting his answers to the King, who did not understand the language. Every where the child's performances excited the greatest wonder and admiration. Not only would he play anything set before him at first sight, but he would transpose or accompany from a full score; his improvisations are also spoken of as remarkable, not only for their melodic interest but for their harmony.
